Upon an invitation from the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA), ESCWA Regional Advisors on Environment and Water Ralf Klingbeil and on Information and Communication Technology Saleem Zoughbi embarked on a joint mission to Ramallah in late February to discuss management of water-related information and data in the Palestinian Authority.

The ESCWA advisors and the PWA reviewed the status of information and data management within the authority, highlighting efforts to develop and upgrade its water database system with support received from the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

During the ESCWA mission, PWA invited government stakeholders to a first coordination meeting on water-related geo-spatial information and data management. Participants included representatives from the Environmental Quality Authority, the Palestinian Central Bureau for Statistics, and the ministries of agriculture health, planning and administrative development.

Expected relevant future developments and interactions among government institutions were among topics considered at the meeting, where participants presented their institutions’ perspectives with regard to water-related information and data management and explained the needs and expectations of their respective organizations for information from the PWA.

Participants acknowledged the need for coordination between the Palestinian Authority institutions in matters related to water-related geo-spatial information and data management. They expressed interest in establishing a technical coordination body that would focus on management of water-related geo-spatial information and databases, which would also involve civil society and other potential participants at a later stage.